Art Video Game Reflection

Sofia Tiu - World Hunger Video Game - Adobe Flash Pro CC - 7 May 2015

TECHNICAL

The technical steps that I used for the video game were learning the new controls and learning the entire program itself. I am extremely unfamiliar with Adobe Flash Pro CC, just as I am with all of the other Adobe programs. Jumping into a program with no guidance was kind of rough. While working the program, I figured out how to: change the background of games, change the question side of cards and change the answer side of cards. I also figured out how to experiment with different programs and trying to 'explore' around to find my way. Lastly, I was able to learn how to function a timeline on Adobe Flash Pro CC. 

IDEA OR CONCEPT

The idea that eventually used in the video game was the World Hunger theme. My world hunger theme was to incorporate the idea of World Hunger and to show a difference between how easy it is to feed the poor and the middle-class/rich. There are seven different answer sides, 3 being poor and 4 being rich/middle-class. The player will notice that it's difficult to get all the cards matched and I intended for this to show the harsh reality of starvation. There is only so much food in the world, and the ratio between being able to feed the rich and the poor is extremely more unfair that 4:3.

My idea never really changed throughout the production process. I knew first thing that I was going to go along with the world hunger theme because it was the first idea that struck during my epiphany. Though several ideas about the theme changed overtime. At first I wanted the idea to be flappy bird, but then I changed it over to memory because I thought the theme would be more easier to understand or comprehend.

INFLUENCES

I didn't have any influences for my art video game. If anything, I was inspired by the actual video game itself to recreate it into an art video game.

COMPOSITION

The layout of the video game was already set up beforehand. I decided since the layout was fairly symmetrical in itself, I would keep the layout the same. I didn't believe that there was a reason to change the layout so it was asymmetrical because I thought it would have taken away from the concept.

Since the layout of the video is symmetrical, the eye movement doesn't necessarily move in a circle but as harmony in the centre. Though that might be considered boring, I thought that the video game might have broken if I rearranged the layout too much. Though I believe the original layout is very comfortable with the player so they don't get a feeling that's too overwhelming.

MOTIVATION

My personal motivation was to show the honest truth about world hunger. I feel like too many people get annoyed at those commercials and think that if they can afford a commercial, then why ask people to donate? In truth, the thousands of dollars they used to fund that commercial can be worth millions if everyone who viewed the commercial to donate a dollar or two. It is true, the commercial is worth a valuable amount of money but that money can only feed a small portion of the entire world. Throughout the world, there are people starving. Even in Walkerton, sadly we would never know. Playing my game realizes how hard it is to feed everyone. Through my classmates that have played my game, have ended in 3 ways: 1) Could only feed the poor before running out of lives, 2) Could only feed the rich before running out of lives, and 3) Couldn't even feed everyone. Sadly, those three results are how the starvation situation is in reality.

CRITICAL ASSESSMENT

I feel like the most successful part of the video game are my background changes. I feel very proud of it because most people only have one background throughout their entire game, and I miraculously managed to have a different background for each different frame/section of the game.

The entire production surprised me because I realized that I am terrible at navigating through unknown programs on my own. I felt like I was on an isolated island and had to survive for 100 days- and I unsurprisingly died within the first hour. The most difficult thing about the video game was learning the program.

If I had additional time, I think I would research more about the program and watch several YouTube videos on it. I think it would have been better if we had gotten a better introduction to the program from Ms. George-Easton, because she seemed fairly confident in our capabilities to recreate a video game. I think that if I knew what my goals were more confidently, then I would be able to create a better video game.